What stories would you like to see next?

[Chris]

These are stories I plan to do in next three years, but my plans can change. What do you most want to see? The stories have to be out of copyright, and preferably classics, but really it's up to you.

[Alex]

I think it would be best to start doing stories that people really know - Treasure Island, The Odyssey, Romeo and Juliet... I think you'll rise in popularity quicker if you choose stories that a lot of people like. Genesis of the Gods is an interesting concept, but I don't think it will bring in as many new players as the classics will.

[Caius]

I played Professor Bhaer in Little Women for a high school play. That's a great story. I might even have a CD with pictures of our set (I can't give you permission to use the other actors' photos, but definitely the set).

[Chris]

Thanks, those would be great! That's two votes for LW so far...

[limil]

What about...

Canterbury Tales (maybe some of it would need censorship in order to remain family friendly...)
Don Quixote
Something by William Blake
Paradise Lost (if you're feeling particularly ambitious!)

[Alex]

After Genesis of the Gods I would strongly suggest doing something a lot of people would know (or at least know of, even if they haven't necessarily read the book) - Treasure Island, Journey to the Center of the Earth, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Romeo and Juliet... something that would get a lot of new people interested. After all, I found out about this whole thing because I'm a huge fan of Les Miserables.

[Chris]

re: better known books:
I agree! In hindsight, having a medieval poem for story 2 was a mistake, and then I was committed to the Theogony, another obscure text, because story 2 leads into it. My current plan is to next do Julius Caesar and then Treasure Island (for exactly the reason you give), but do you think it would more commercial to do Treasure Island next?

re: Canterbury Tales: yes, I'd like to do that
re: Don Quixote, I'll probably give it another go as it's such a classic, but to be honest I never got more than 2/3 of the way through the unabridged version.
re: Paradise Lost: a definite contender, as it's so famous, though as Alex says I need to get a few better known titles in first.

[Alex]

Hmm, I would probably do Treasure Island next, yes. I'm not sure Julius Caesar would be the best Shakespearean play to start with (there are other ones which are so much more popular!), but if you're bent on having that be the first one, then I'd probably get a famous book (such as Treasure Island) out first.

[Chris]

I checked the results so far, and so far everyone puts Treasure Island in their top three. I think they're trying to tell me something! From an economic survival point of view, I suppose it makes sense to always do the most popular story, and then branch out to the more heavyweight stories only when sales justify it. I don't want to be driven by the market, but I do want to survive.

This afternoon I did a quick plan of how a game version of Treasure Island would work, and I was amazed and delighted: it's fundamentally much simpler than anything I've considered so far. I wonder if there's a natural correlation here: simple story structures are easier to understand and thus tend to be more popular? I mean, it's a VERY powerful story from beginning to end, and there are no redundant characters, no redundant locations, everything is neatly self contained, and so on. Shakespeare can wait. I'm going with John Silver!

[Byzantine]

I'd like to see "A Tale of Two Cities." It is my favorite book, and I think it would make an interesting computer game because it is the most dramatic of all Dickens's stories. I'm glad to see that it made #1 on the "Best Books" list that Chris posted on the blog the other day.

I'd also like to see "War and Peace". I think it was originally scheduled to be one of the first 3 games, but Chris changed the list. I didn't see it on the list of games to vote on above, but in addition to the votes I cast for my other 3 choices, "A Tale of Two Cities" and "War and Peace" would be great games to play and I think other people would enjoy playing them also.